★★

“There are some pertinent lines and astute observations”

Landlordism has existed for a very long time and has always had a bad press. Historically it was viewed as a means for unearned income for a class of parasitic landlords, but in today’s society the negativism is much stronger. Landlordism is associated with high rents, the housing crisis, homelessness, and the spin off problems of poor living conditions and mental health. There is no denying that it is a deeply ingrained problem with political origins, one that recent governments have arguably failed to address. Ethan and Kalman Dean-Richards, however, tackle the subject head on – with no apologies – in their new play, “The Good Landlord”.

Drawn from their own experiences with renting, the play is an absurdist take that holds up a pretty fractured mirror to the stories we are likely to hear on the news. Jack (Jason Adam) is facing eviction by his ruthless landlord, Marianne (Julia Winwood), for nonpayment of rent. Jack’s girlfriend apparently left him in the lurch, but that is an underexplored sideline. Slightly dim-witted Sean (Blayne Kelly) has been roped in by Jack to concoct a scheme to thwart the imminent eviction by subletting. The pair will pretend to be landlord and letting agent to lure an unsuspecting tenant into renting a cupboard in the flat. In walks Sony (Caroline Gray), over eager to humiliate herself and fall for the scam. Yes – she is not what she seems. We learn that she is a mystery shopper – a social media sensation known as the ‘Bad Tenant’ – on a maniacal mission to expose rogue landlords. Nay, not just expose, but explode (quite literally). It is at this point, however, that the drama implodes.

It looks like the play could be a farce of sorts but, even at a slim seventy-five minutes, it is somewhat drawn out – like one of those pop-ups, clickbait videos that frustrates with its repeated stalling. The writers appear to have aimed for absurdism. A kind of creative chaos. Yet the result is simply a bit of a mess. It is true that humour is a powerful method of getting people to listen, but the message here is swamped in exaggerated performances and an autocratic self-righteousness. We want more of a soap opera, but we get soapbox protestations. Yusuf Niazi’s direction allows a semi-improvised approach which we are never absolutely sure is intentional.

Confusion extends to the performances. Kelly’s hyperventilating Sean swiftly descends into a catatonic, mute and inexplicable portrayal while Adam, as Jack, delivers with no noise gate or compression. Gray is suitably quirky as Sony while Winwood’s Marianne is quietly befuddled and underused. All four resemble headless chickens at some point or other. Despite the lack of nuance, there are some neat touches. A Black and Decker drill is brandished like Chekhov’s gun, and previous connections between the characters are cleverly revealed. But, overall, the characters’ motivations are too dubious and extreme to gain our sympathy, even if we might agree with their reasoning.

It is an admirable project, backed by renter’s union Acorn, and Ethan and Kalman Dean-Richards can truly be applauded for highlighting the serious issues. “The Good Landlord” definitely plays on the caricature of landlords and letting agents to great effect. There are some pertinent lines and astute observations. This could be quite an incendiary exposé, full of dark humour, but the approach and execution is clumsy and disorganised, and has a simplistic preachiness beneath the chaos that is off-putting. Like its subject, “The Good Landlord” needs more regulating.

POSSUM TROT

Theatre at the Tabard

★★★

“the innate awkwardness of humdrum humanity is finely portrayed”

Apparently, there are five Possum Trots in the United States. In Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri, Texas and Virginia. All of them desolate backwaters – what are referred to as an ‘unincorporated area’, which basically means that they are not really legally recognised as existing. In fact, all that is left of the one in Missouri is a one-room school, a house and a closed down general store. A ghost town, no less. The “Possum Trot” in which Kathy Rucker’s new play is set is fictional, but its title has a ring of truth about it, which is reflected in the natural and authentic depiction of the handful of oddballs that are clinging on to keep their community alive. On top of this, regular tornados further threaten to wipe the town completely off the map.

Rucker’s play explores the challenges encountered by one family as it faces the collapse of the farming community, the exodus of its population and the climate disasters raining down like military attacks, forcing the people to scuttle down to their basement on an almost daily basis. They’re a stoic lot, and humour fuels their determination to carry on. Rucker is focusing on the unpretentious simplicity of everyday life; and what we witness in the short hour-and-a-quarter is the eye of the storm. Aside from a couple of upturned chairs (which happens in blackout) “Possum Trot” is a gentle affair. Almost inconsequential. Like the town itself, it doesn’t appear to be going anywhere.

Maxine (Sarah Berger) runs the fort. Or rather, she runs the only diner in town. Reuben Speed’s set is the real thing. Brilliantly authentic, it transforms the whole space into Maxine’s diner come café come bar come local hub. Berger adds to the realism as she shuffles on in the dismal dawn’s early light to open up for the day, wearing her stoicism like a tattered apron. We think we are in the latter part of the twentieth century until Maxine’s extended family wander in wielding mobile phones and Instagram stories. In particular Neve Francis’ sprightly hypochondriac Billie – the granddaughter whose dream of escaping to art college is about to be realised, despite a very significant personal crisis that pops up – which is never really explored satisfactorily. The middle generation come in the form of chalk and cheese couple, Jeremiah (Nikolas Salmon) and Pru (Dani Arlington). Salmon represents the sense of tradition, desperate to live up to his father’s name, while Arlington’s Pru tries to drag him into the present and get him to sell up the farm. If the dwindling economy doesn’t soon kill off the cattle, the weather will. A comic moment involves the rescuing of a poor cow who finds itself on the roof after a particularly bad Kansas-like gale.

In the family’s midst is village local, Duane (Todd Boyce) and his stream of bad dad-jokes which repeatedly misfire, deliberately failing to puncture the chaotic dramas unfolding within the close-knit family. Scott Le Crass respectfully directs by playing down the drama, avoiding heightened histrionics. These are ordinary people after all, and the innate awkwardness of humdrum humanity is finely portrayed. It starts with a wake (Maxine is recently widowed), continues with a celebration (the diner is fifty years old) and ends with a joke (which unfortunately has little to do with the narrative).

Like the landlocked town of Possum Trot itself, Rucker’s play is neither here nor there. Yet there is an appealing, understated charm that does draw you in; like you’re discovering a single episode of a soap opera. We find ourselves wanting more. If only we could scroll through to the back stories, or forward to future instalments. And Hannah Bracegirdle’s country-tinged soundtrack is spot on; from Bruce Springsteen’s opening harmonica of ‘Nebraska’, through to the closing notes of Bob Dylan’s achingly beautiful ‘Shelter from the Storm’. This play won’t necessarily kick up a storm, but its mix of poignancy and humour is quietly soothing, like the muffled roll thunder heard from a safe distance.

THE GOOD LANDLORD

Omnibus Theatre

★★

“There are some pertinent lines and astute observations”

THE GOOD LANDLORD

Omnibus Theatre

Reviewed on 18th November 2025

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Amrit Kaur

Previously reviewed at this venue:

THE GOOD LANDLORD

THE GOOD LANDLORD

THE GOOD LANDLORD

POSSUM TROT

Theatre at the Tabard

★★★

“the innate awkwardness of humdrum humanity is finely portrayed”

POSSUM TROT

Theatre at the Tabard

Reviewed on 14th November 2025

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Bonnie Britain

Previously reviewed at this venue:

POSSUM TROT

POSSUM TROT

POSSUM TROT

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